National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") is a securities regulatory instrument that governs how companies can disclose mining-related information in Canada. Its rules aim to prevent companies from sharing inaccurate or misleading information about their mineral assets with prospective investors and the public. It is overseen and enforced by the Canadian Securities Administrators. NI 43-101 applies broadly to companies both public and private, and to a variety of disclosures types including mineral exploration reports, reporting of resources and reserves, presentations, oral comments, and websites. NI 43-101 covers mineral products such, precious metals and solid energy commodities as well as bulk minerals, dimension stone, precious stones and mineral sands commodities. National Instrument 43-101 is comparable to the Joint Ore Reserves Committee Code (JORC Code) which regulates the publication of mineral exploration reports on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). It is also broadly comparable with the South African Code for the Reporting of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (SAMREC). The reporting codes are, however, not entirely congruent in practice, in that NI 43-101 is more prescriptive in terms of the manner in which mineral exploration reporting is presented, although the content of the technical reports, and the scientific rigors to which the mineral resource classifications within them are put, are often very similar. For TSX listing purposes, an NI 43-101 Technical Report would have to be accompanied by a Report prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. For ASX listings, a JORC Mineral Resource Statement needs to be accompanied by a Valmin Valuation Report, while for JSE listings, a Competent Person's Report (CPRs), which is compliant with SAMREC and The South African Code for the Valuation of Mineral Assets (SAMVAL), needs to be submitted. In many cases, NI 43-101 and JORC Code technical reports are considered inter-changeable and may be accepted by either regulatory body in cases of dual listed entities and, indeed, are accepted as the de facto industry reporting standard by many other jurisdictions which lack similar rigorous reporting standards or internationally recognized industry professional bodies. The LSE, for instance, accepts CPRs, Qualified Person's Reports (QPRs), and Mineral Resource Statements, compiled using JORC, SAMREC and SAMVAL, or NI 43-101, when accompanied by a NI51-101 Valuation Form, for listing on the LSE. Likewise, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange accepts reports prepared in accordance with NI 43-101, SAMREC or JORC.
Purpose
The purpose of National Instrument 43-101 is to ensure that misleading, erroneous or fraudulent information relating to mineral properties is not published and promoted to investors on the stock exchanges overseen by the Canadian Securities Administrators. NI 43-101 was created after the Bre-X scandal to protect investors from unsubstantiated mineral project disclosures. "The gold reserves at (Bre-X's) Busang were alleged to be 200 million ounces (6,200 t), or up to 8% of the entire world's gold reserves at that time. However, it was a massive fraud and there was no gold. The core samples had been faked by salting them with outside gold. An independent lab later claimed that the faking had been poorly done, including the use of shavings from gold jewelry. In 1997, Bre-X collapsed and its shares became worthless in one of the biggest stock scandals in Canadian history." The promulgation of a codified reporting scheme makes it more difficult for fraud to occur and reassures investors that the projects have been assessed in a scientific and professional manner. However, even properly and professionally investigated mineral deposits are not necessarily economic, nor does the presence of a NI 43-101-, JORC- or SAMREC and SAMVAL-compliant CPR or QPR necessarily mean that it is a good investment. Similarly, the publication of a complex technical report with all the inherent jargon, technical wording and abstract geological, metallurgical and economic information may not actually significantly advantage an investor who is not able to fully nor properly understand the content or importance of this information. In this way, NI 43-101 may not serve the interests of those it is designed to protect—the retail investors who may easily misinterpret such information. Because of this, many investors hire independent geology consultants to review the reports for them.
Requirements NI 43-101 stipulates and codifies the form and content of a compliant report (i.e.; a report that complies with the Reporting Standard). Prescribed disclosure within the National Instrument relates to;
All disclosure of scientific or technical information, including disclosure of a mineral resource or mineral reserve, concerning a mineral project on a property material to the issuer must be based upon information prepared by or under the supervision of a qualified person What the National Instrument is to be used for, such as which types of mineral properties must be covered by a compliant report Prescribes the terminology to be used to describe various features, both geologically and financially, within the report Stipulates the type of information to be discussed and the technical data which must be portrayed, for various levels of reporting Prescribes a list of approved Competent Persons, and the definition of Groups and Associations which may qualify to certify such a person as "Qualified" Prescribes that a Qualified Person vouches for the accuracy and completeness of the contained information and the manner in which it is presented Provides guidance on reporting Historical mineral resource estimates Proscribed disclosure within the National Instrument precludes a company from reporting;
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